Isaiah 43:20

20 Even the wild animals will honor me; jackals and ostriches will praise me when I make rivers flow in the desert to give water to my chosen people.

Isaiah 43:20 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 43:20

The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons, and the
owls
Which is not to be understood literally of these creatures, who as they had honoured the Lord, when Israel passed through the wilderness, so would again in their way praise the Lord, when they came through the deserts from Babylon, for giving them water to drink in such dry and thirsty places, to which there may be an allusion; but spiritually of the Gentiles, compared to those creatures for the savageness, fierceness, and stupidity of them, and who were reckoned by the Jews no other than as the beasts of the field; who should honour and glorify God for the Gospel brought unto them, and for his grace and mercy bestowed on them: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert;
as before; (See Gill on Isaiah 43:19); because of the plenty of divine grace, and the means of it: to give drink to my people, my chosen;
to refresh and comfort the hearts of his people, whom he had chosen out from among the Gentiles, and now would call them by his grace, and set them a thirsting after Christ, and salvation by him.

Isaiah 43:20 In-Context

18 But the Lord says, "Do not cling to events of the past or dwell on what happened long ago.
19 Watch for the new thing I am going to do. It is happening already - you can see it now! I will make a road through the wilderness and give you streams of water there.
20 Even the wild animals will honor me; jackals and ostriches will praise me when I make rivers flow in the desert to give water to my chosen people.
21 They are the people I made for myself, and they will sing my praises!"
22 The Lord says, "But you were tired of me, Israel; you did not worship me.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.